Today I am starting a new series titled 'RECENT RELEASES'. In this series, I will write about the recent coin releases by varies mints from around the world. I know it is something that I regularly check for myself, mainly focusing on coins released by the Royal Australian Mint (RAM) and the Perth Mint. As part of this series I will expand my research to include other mints from around the world. As always I will only focus on recent releases of precious metals like silver, gold and platinum.

This first post will feature the silver and gold coins recently released by the Royal Australian Mint in its Mint Issue 135 for October 2021.

The first coins recently released by RAM that I will discuss are the 'Footprints in Time' silver coin, followed by the 'Year of the Tiger' silver and gold lunar coins.

Footprints in Time

The Royal Australian Mint has released a 2021 $1 Fine Silver Proof 1/2oz Coin featuring the Ice Age Footprints of Mungo National Park.

The preserved footprints were revealed at Willandra Lakes Region World Heritage site in 2003. These footprints provide evidence that the Barkandji, Mutthi Mutthi and Ngiyampaa people have been present in Australia for millennia.

To be totally honest I knew nothing about the preserved footprints at the Willandra Lakes Region until I began writing this post. This is one of the aspects of coin collecting that I absolutely love. I have learnt so much about history and humanity during my years of coin collecting.

Reverse Design:

The reverse design of the coin features a Mungo footprint with a stylised map of Australia in cracked clay, with the inscription 'MILLENIA - ONE DOLLAR' and ' WILLANDRA LAKES TRACKWAY'.

Obverse Design:

The obverse design of the coin portray an effigy of Queen Elizabeth II, with the inscription 'ELIZABETH II' and 'AUSTRALIA 2021'.

Coin Price:

The 1/2oz Fine Silver Proof Coin is listed for sale on the RAM eShop for AUD $65.00 ea. This is quite a high price for 1/2oz of silver, but it is quite standard for specialty proof versions of silver coins.

Coin Specifications:

Mint/Brand:	The Royal Australian Mint
Silver Content:	0.5 Troy Ounces
Purity:	.999 Fine Silver
Denomination:	$1 (Australian)
Year of Issue:	2021
Edge:	Milled
Diameter:	28.52mm
Maximum Mintage:	5000
Maximum Mintage:	127

Year of the Tiger - Lunar Series

The year 2022 is the Lunar Year of the Tiger. The Royal Australian Mint has released a series of silver and gold coins for the 2022 Lunar Series which is the third coin released in this series.

The other eleven zodiac signs include the rabbit, dragon, snake, horse, goat, monkey, rooster, dog, pig, mouse and ox.

Investment Coins

The Royal Australian Mint releases what it refers to as investment coins. In common stacker lingo we refer to these as bullion coins. As part of the Year of the Tiger series RAM has released a 1oz .999 Silver Bullion coin and a 1oz .999 Gold Bullion coin.

Bullion or investment coins have a matte finish instead or a mirror finish and tend to be cheaper than the proof version of the coins. The RAM eShop does not list the price for the bullion silver and gold tiger coins. The likely reason for this is that the price for these coins will shift with the spot price of the day and because they do not carry a hefty premium like proof coins, certain mints choose leave the price unlisted.

1oz .999 Silver Investment Coin

1oz .999 Gold Investment Coin

Domed Proof Coins

As part of the Year of the Tiger series RAM has also released a 1oz .999 Silver Domed Proof coin and a 1oz .999 Gold Domed Proof coin.

These stunning proof coins have a mirror finish, with a concave domed shape on the reverse side of the coin. The manufacturing process for these coins is a lot more complex than the bullion coins and the quality of the finish is exceptional. As a result the RAM eShop has listed the price for the domed proof silver and gold tiger coins. The price for each of these coins carries a hefty premium, so they are definitely targeted at the collector or sentimental value market.

• The price for the 1oz Gold Domed Proof Coin is AUD $3,700.00 ea which is roughly AUD $1,200 over the current gold spot price.
• The price for the 1oz Silver Domed Proof Coin is AUD $130.00 ea which is roughly AUD $100 over the current silver spot price.

Beautiful coins, high quality, in great packaging, but if you are looking to recoup your initial investment in these coins on the secondary market, it may be challenging, unless they become exceedingly popular over time or the spot price will need to rise a lot.

1oz .999 Gold Domed Proof Coin

1oz .999 Silver Domed Proof Coin

Uncirculated Ingot

As part of the Year of the Tiger series RAM the 1/2oz .999 Uncirculated Ingot is the final silver item released for October 2021. The ingot has the same Lunar Tiger design as the other coins, but it is minted on a rectangle 1/2oz bar known as an ingot. The ingot is also tastefully presented in a red cardboard display box.

The price for the 1/2oz Uncirculated Ingot is AUD $65.00 ea which is roughly AUD $50 over the current silver spot price.

1/2oz .999 Silver Uncirculated Ingot

From my experience the RAM issue coins do tend to carry high premiums when they are released by the mint, but the quality of the RAM coins have always been to the highest, especially their proof coins.

Please share any examples of RAM coins that you have in your stack, I would love to see them.

Post authored by @strenue